Afterwards
by Eriyu
Summary: The battles are over... mostly. The drama has passed... mostly. All that's left is to enjoy life on the Islands. Oneshots, on and off SoraxRiku, will be updated, um... rarely.
1. Chapter 1

**Oh my gosh, I can't believe I'm doing this. So this is the first fanfic I've written in absolute ages, and I hope it's not crap. I really enjoyed it, though. I'm considering doing a group of one-shots all about Destiny Islands after Kingdom Hearts II, but I really don't know. I do know that reviews would be a great encouragement.**

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* * *

  
** Sora did not dare spare a hand to remove the large spike of hair that had fallen over one eye. His smaller body heaving, he adjusted his footing and dug his shoe into the shallow sand. Riku did the same some fifteen feet away, and Sora grinned wildly. Water on two sides, Sora on a third, Riku had little choice but to back onto the rickety wooden bridge connecting the small island they were on to the even smaller one beyond.

Disregard the fact that Riku could easily have jumped over or around Sora. Kairi disliked it, to say the least, when the two risked property damage to the structures the islands' kids had so painstakingly built over generations. Her exact words were, "You stupid jerkwads! Do you have any idea how long it took Tidus and me to fix that thing while you two lazy bums were off together? Next time you feel the need to destroy something like this, you're making me a new clubhouse yourselves from scratch while I sit on the side and laugh!" Sora and Riku did not wish to test her on that, and so Riku was, for all intents and purposes, cornered.

Sora was silently grateful it would be over soon; the Destiny Islands mid-summer could rival the heat of Agrabah with the added nuisance of humidity. His vision was already blurring slightly at the corners. His shoulders slumped perceptibly, but he held his Keyblade before him, ready as ever. Riku had proven before that he was not above attacking Sora while the former took a moment to wipe the sweat from his face. Riku, of course, looked as obnoxiously perfect as ever, but upon closer inspection, Sora suspected that he was as exhausted as himself. Pulling one of his trademark grins, Sora dashed in.

Riku met him in a clash of Keyblades, Ultima Weapon bearing down on Way to the Dawn. Riku broke free and hopped back – almost to the beginning of the bridge, and Sora took that moment to rush forward, initiating a furious exchange of blows. The harsh sound of metal on metal rang throughout the empty island as both boys tread carefully across the haphazard spread of planks over water. Riku backed nimbly onto the boards he knew to be steadiest, deftly twirling his Keyblade to block Sora's furious jabs. Sora leapt from plank to plank wildly, twisting away from Riku's own slashes.

Riku soon found himself dead center on the islet, stopping to reevaluate his position. Sora himself halted momentarily after taking his second foot off the wavering bridge and furrowed his brow in contemplation. Riku stood stock-still opposite him (and didn't that boy _ever_ sweat?), and the next moment, Sora had nearly closed the distance between them in one swift leap. His eyes widened as Riku suddenly took to the air, landed behind the brunet, and darted his free hand up to Sora's, which was still above his head, slackened with surprise. He delicately plucked the blade out of Sora's grip and held it high above his head, letting Way to the Dawn disappear in a flash of white light and instead carrying a wicked smirk.

Sora turned around, retorted with a small pout and halfhearted glare at his own weapon being held out of his reach, and stepped back, shoving his hand out in front of him. With another brief blaze of white, he was holding Ultima Weapon once again, his grin having returned as he held the weapon up to Riku's nose.

"You cheated," Riku accused, in reference to Kairi's fearsome decree.

"You cheated first!" Sora exclaimed indignantly, distractedly allowing the one remaining Keyblade to disappear.

"Yeah, but you're not supposed to cheat. You're the good guy."

Sora's voice lost its playfulness as his eyes narrowed dangerously. His hands balled into fists. "So are you!" he asserted, staring up at Riku fiercely. At least, it started out fierce, but quickly degenerated into a concerned frown. Hadn't they gotten past this? Riku looked away uncomfortably for a moment before giving Sora an apologetic smile. Sora's heart twinged. He hated that. Riku would make those tiny casual references to those darker days, then drop the subject before Sora could attempt to resolve it. He made the same mental note he always did to bring it up later, but at the moment, he accepted the apology wordlessly and stepped back.

"So does that mean I win?" Riku asked with a smile that bordered on a smirk.

"Sure," Sora muttered a moment before remembering that _he_ had won. "H-Hey, wait! No you _didn't!_"

Riku shrugged as if that particular point were inconsequential to the argument, pulled a water bottle out of his pocket, and drank deeply. Suddenly reminded of the heat of the day and his subsequent dehydration, Sora held out his hands and gave Riku his best puppy-dog eyes, even wiggling a little for emphasis. Riku merely smirked and, as before, lifted the object of Sora's attention out of reach. The younger boy wrinkled his nose and growled quietly, straining his arm toward the oh-so-tempting water. After flailing on his toes for an amusing few moments, he switched tactics.

"Oof!" Riku gasped as a spiky brown head plowed into his stomach, sending both boys sprawling on the sand and lodging Sora's elbow in Riku's spleen, completely accidentally, of course.

Sora then proceeded to pull himself up, dust his hands on his pants, and sit himself firmly on top of his friend's stomach, receiving a deadpan stare for his efforts. Ignoring said stare, he reached for the coveted water bottle, which had tumbled a couple of feet away, and emptied it in one long gulp. With an exaggerated sigh of relief, he tossed the bottle over his shoulder and leered at the face below him. The owner of the face pushed Sora off with a snort that turned into a chuckle, until both of them were laughing hysterically at nothing in particular, except for Riku, who was laughing hysterically at the ridiculous face Sora had made at him.

After it died down, the two were left staring happily at each other, cerulean eyes meeting aqua. The quiet of the empty islands around them was disturbed by not even the slightest breeze, only the calming, monotonous lap of low tide's waves on the shore. The harsh sun had diminished somewhat, edging lazily closer to the horizon and casting the beginnings of shadows onto the ground. Riku inched closer to the other boy.

"So how'd you get so tall anyway?" Sora complained petulantly, leaning back on his elbows and completely ruining the moment. "You're only a year older than me!" He was apparently completely oblivious to his friend's homicidal glare, instead looking at the group of fluffy clouds drifting directly above him.

"What? I don't know!" Riku said irritably, inwardly cursing all that was Holy for Sora's denseness. "Maybe it's because _I_ don't sneak all my vegetables to my dog."

Sora gaped at Riku's audacity. That was a low blow. "You know he has a folic acid deficiency! How could you make fun of his medical problems?!" Sora was now waving his arms wildly, both in defense of his dog and in his desperation to explain Riku's height. "I know! You're on steroids, aren't you?!"

"Wh-_what?!_" Whatever Riku had been expecting, that was not it.

"That's it! We're talking about your self-esteem problems right now!"

"I'm not on steroids!" Riku shouted defensively.

"Holy crap, are steroids _contagious_? It sounds like the name of an STD, doesn't it? I'm going to catch steroids now, aren't I?"

"Sora, I am _not_ on steroids."

"And why should I believe you, huh? Steroids turn people into pathological liars! They turn your hair grey, too!"

"Sora, do have any idea what you're talking about?" After his initial bewilderment, Riku was somewhat amused by the facts that Sora was clearly making up off the top of his head.

Sora faltered. "…Not really." His face lost the mad, panicked expression it had just held, and his arms fell to his knees. He adopted a thoughtful expression. After a few moments, "So you're really not taking any drugs?"

"Really, I'm not," Riku assured him patiently.

"So you're sure it's safe to kiss you?" Sora asked warily.

"Fairly sure," Riku grinned mischievously.

"All right, then," Sora said with a devilish smirk.

"Oof!"

* * *

**Yeah, Riku's got big-ass pockets. He can put a water bottle in one and it'll stay there throughout all his leapin' around the island. I didn't even _have_ to make that up. Just to clarify, Riku's really not on steroids; I promise. Sora just gets a little illogical when his imagination gets away from him. That's about as close as I can bring myself to write romance, too.**


	2. Chapter 2

It was only a short distance from the neighborhood where Sora, Riku, and Kairi all lived to their school. They thus endured the walk together each morning, setting out just after the sun rose. A few gently winding roads melded into the main part of town where Islands High School was located. It made for a wonderfully quiet, serene walk for the three.

"But noooo, the waffles wouldn't just wear the freaking hats already; they made me prank call Tidus before they decided they would fit on their heads. Apparently the waffles had heads in my dream. I just remembered that, yeah." Unfortunately for Riku and Kairi, Sora was an incorrigible morning person. "No, wait, by the time they put the hats on they were already Tidus's mom, and then she got all mad at me for running up her phone bill. Riku, are you listening?"

Riku grumbled what Sora assumed to be an affirmative. Really, all of Riku's early-morning grumbles sounded alike. Kairi was at least coherent by the time she got outside.

At this point, they were entering the main part of town. Now, conveniently placed along the path to their school was a charming little coffee shop and bakery. Nudged between a bookstore and a florist, it was lovingly maintained with warm paint and a cozy atmosphere. Naturally, the smell of roasted coffee attracted the three teenagers walking down the street. Between that and the positively delightful staff, it had become something of a tradition for many of the Islands' students to stop by before school.

A bell chimed above their heads as the trio walked in. "Nao!" Sora waved to the blonde behind the counter.

"Like, hey! You guys are first today! The usual?" She didn't wait for a reply before shuffling around behind the counter.

"Hey, what if I want something different for once?" Sora tried to sound hurt.

Nao continued on her way with nary a backward glance. "And, like, do you?"

"Uh, not really."

"Here you go!" Nao set three cups on the counter and was promptly paid in a pile of grimy Munny. She tried to refrain from making a face. Absorbed as she was, she failed to notice a much larger problem in the making.

Sora had carelessly grabbed the cup closest to him.

"Sora, wait!" Kairi's voice rang through the little café. "That's Riku's!"

Riku suddenly jerked to life and moved to grab Sora's hand. He was too late. By the time the warning registered in Sora's head, by the time Riku got a hold of his friend's wrist, a quarter of the espresso was gone, and Sora's eyes had widened ever so slightly.

An observant onlooker might have noticed a small twitch in the hand gripping the paper cup.

"S…Sora?" Kairi squeaked.

"Ohmygosh, I am like, so sorry!" Nao wrung her hands for a moment before dashing into the back room. A panicked wail emanated through the door. "Booooss!"

Riku and Kairi were frozen, their wary eyes on Sora, who by that point had set the cup down and was shaking noticeably.

The tinkling of a bell broke the silence, and a brunette walked in, followed by a small group. "Morning! Na-Nao… Sora?"

"Selphie! Guys! Get out of here!" Kairi ran over to herd the small crowd outside. Questioning faces peered in but were hurriedly shooed away. Kairi finally slipped out herself and slammed the door behind her, leaving Riku to fend for himself and finding herself surrounded by curious stares and shouts inquiring as to the reason they couldn't get their freaking coffee. Only two other people had seen enough to get a good idea as to what was happening.

"What's… Is Sora…? No. He didn't!" Selphie squeaked.

"He accidentally picked up Riku's… I should probably go back in and help."

A tanned hand rested on Kairi's shoulder as she spun around to head back in. "Hey, I don't think that's such a good idea. Riku can handle himself, ya?" Wakka looked pointedly at her.

She frowned and shuddered, reluctantly releasing the door handle. She prayed silently for her best friends' safety.

* * *

Riku gripped his friend's shoulders and spun him around, staring intensely at glazed blue eyes and bracing himself. "Sora?" There was no response, save for Sora's continued trembling. The younger boy continued to stare into the space beyond his friend's right ear.

Riku noted vaguely in the background the muffled sound of Nao's apologetic near-hysteria in the back, followed by the deeper, calmer voice of the shop's owner.

He pushed them out of his mind, focusing on the catatonic remains of his friend. He was getting frightened. He shook Sora gently.

Silence. A brief moment passed.

"_Riku!_" Blue eyes snapped to life, and Sora launched himself like a cannonball at the other boy.

"Oof!"

Just then, the door to the back room slammed against the wall and Vincent strode out, crimson eyes ever stern. Long black hair blew across his face, and the gold highlighting on his boots and his left arm seemed to flash more than the lighting of the room should have allowed. His deep red cloak, a faint white dust dotting the hem, billowed out behind him.

He appraised the situation: Sora, latched onto Riku's torso. Riku, attempting to pry him off lightly despite what looked like a dwindling supply of oxygen. Nao, hovering behind him and utterly destroying her manicure with her teeth. An assortment of teenaged faces, staring wide-eyed through the window (Vincent realized at that moment that the windows were really far larger than was practical; he might just have to get rid of them entirely. As soon as possible).

Sora had begun nuzzling Riku's shoulder, which was slightly awkward considering the circumstances, when Vincent reached out toward him and lifted him up by the most convenient handle available. It took a moment for the functioning portion of Sora's brain to register the fact that he was being strangled by his own necklace, and in the interest of self-preservation, he dropped Riku in favor of haphazardly clawing at his own throat.

Vincent dropped the chain and Sora leaped away, unconcerned with the chairs he was knocking over and skidding to a stop at the other end of the room. Electric blue eyes, even brighter than usual, zipped from side to side, eying everything from the intricate molding along the ceiling, to the people determined to keep him from doing any permanent damage to anything (or anyone), to the guilty cup of coffee still resting innocuously on the counter. Just as Riku starting inching forward, the eyes fixed on the other person standing there.

"_Vinnie!"_

Having considerably more warning than Sora's previous victim, Vincent slid safely out of the boy's trajectory. Except for one little detail.

"You have _flour_ on your cloak!" Sora wailed as his eyes welled up, voicing his feelings of utter betrayal. "You've been _baking_ again!" He clutched the offending cloak desperately and yanked at it, inadvertently paying Vincent back for the earlier choking episode.

"Sora… he owns a bakery. Yes, of course he's been baking."

Sora was unfazed by Riku's logic, addressing Vincent shrilly. "Where's my chocolate éclair? Don't you _love_ me?"

Vincent was at a loss. He tugged futilely as his cloak and looked to Nao, wordlessly demanding that she come remove his leech. The mutinous employee could barely keep from laughing.

* * *

"So did you guys ever even _tell_ Sora that Vincent gives him decaf every day?"

"Well, no... We figured he'd get all indignant on us and insist on getting something else..." Kairi was only shuffling her feet a little bit, really. "And, well… You guys know how that goes."

"You mean he goes _batshit_?"

"Um… yeah, that." Kairi risked looking over her shoulder and through the windows along with everyone else.

"Oh, man, dat's gotta hurt, ya?"

"Isn't that necklace Sora has really pointy?"

"What, you think Vincent's gonna stab him? Nah, he'll be fine."

"Holy crap! I didn't know Sora could move that fast!"

Kairi frowned as Tidus accidentally shoved an elbow into her arm. "Guys…" No response. "Guys…!"

"He _is_ going to calm down eventually, right?"

"How's Vincent gonna pay for all this damage?"

"Fifty munny says Riku takes him out!"

"_Hey, dummies!_"

A few bewildered faces turned to meet the disapproving frown of what was now a rather upset Princess of Heart. "I know all this is all really entertaining, but don't you have better things to do than watch Sora get strangled?" Her arms crossed. "You're not being any help here, and they do sell coffee in other places too, you know."

Any remaining whispers broke off awkwardly.

"Hey, uh…" Wakka fidgeted and looked away. "We didn't mean nothing _mean_, ya know? We can't just leave now, not while he's all…" He trailed off with a few extra vague gestures thrown in.

"Yeah!" Selphie piped up. "We're here for moral support! Sending Sora good vibes, right?"

Kairi sighed, massaging her temples and smiled ruefully. "Yeah… Sorry guys, I didn't mean to go off on you. I mean, with everything he's been through… I'm sure he'll be okEEEEK!"

The unmistakable sound of delicate objects shattering into thousands of pieces drew all their morally supportive faces back to the window in an instant.

Whatever had just happened was over. The café was practically in ruins, but all was quiet. Sora was nowhere in sight. Nao still stood behind the counter, eyes wide. Having run out of nail to gnaw on, she'd moved on to her fingertips. Vincent and Riku appeared to be crouched over, talking about something too quietly to hear from the outside. A moment later, Vincent nodded once and stood up. As he walked back to the kitchen with a flash of red, Riku shifted slightly to the left, revealing—Oh. There he was.

Sora was lying face-down on the hardwood floor.

He did not appear to be moving.

Riku flipped him over and hoisted him up onto his shoulder, proceeding to carry him to the door.

"Hey, uh, Riku?" Wakka was the first to say anything. "Sora is… _alive_, right, man?"

Riku seemed genuinely surprised, though it could have been either at the question or at seeing the sizable crowd waiting outside. "Yeah, of course. Uh, what are you guys doing here?"

"Waiting for you two, of course!" Kairi crossed her arms. "We're your friends; did you expect us to just abandon you?"

Riku looked slightly confused. "Er, no… it's just that school started." He gestured at the clock of the nearby bookshop. "About fifteen minutes ago."

Kairi followed his gaze. "…Eheh, heh, right…" She giggled sheepishly as the larger part of the crowd behind her squeaked and scrambled away in a rush to get to class with minimal punishment. "I guess we'd better go too, then. Ah, about Sora…?" She peered at the unconscious face drooling slightly on Riku's shoulder.

"He'll be fine. You know him." Riku, apparently unaware of the drooling, shrugged and started heading off in the direction of their classmates. Kairi followed suit.

* * *

"So you two worked out what to do about all the damage?"

The pair had decided to take their time getting to school in the vain hope that Sora might wake up on the way.

"Yeah, Vincent said he'll pay for it if Sora and I help out fixing some of the furniture. I figure Sora'd feel bad enough about it to try and fix it all on his own, but it's probably better if I pitch in, too."

"Mm-hm…" Kairi realized she'd left her latté sitting on the counter back there, but thought better of bringing it up.

They walked on a few more minutes in silence. Within sight of Islands High School, Riku noticed Kairi eying Sora, a questioning look in her eyes. Gathering her courage, the girl took a deep breath. "So, Riku… what _did_ actually happen in there? At the end?"

Riku shook his head and sighed, adjusting his grip on Sora's limp body. "Well, the details are a little… It's kind of…" He gestured futilely with his free hand. "Let's just say… that claw thing Vincent has? Not just for show."

That, Kairi decided, was all the detail she needed. As the sun climbed higher in the sky, the trio entered the schoolyard.

* * *

**UGH, I UPDATED. OH MY GOSH, I UPDATED. UGHHH. x_x**

**Okay, so in the middle of Chapter 2, I may have gotten a little sidetracked. I didn't intend it to turn out so cracky, and I am so sorry for how I so utterly murdered Vincent, but… somehow, I love baker!Vinnie.**

**For the unfamiliar, Nao isn't an OC. She's another Nomura character, from The World Ends with You, which by the way is an incredible game that everyone should play. I figured she was fair game as much as Final Fantasy. ^_^**


End file.
